Support for window shade rollers



E. A. CLAVEY SUPPORT FOR WINDOW SHADE ROLLEBS March 22, 1938.

7 Filed March 26, 1955 I 2 Sheets-Sheet l fcz ward CZczz/fy March 22, 1938. E. A. CLAVEY I SUPPORT FOR WINDOW SHADE ROLLERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 26, 1935 Patented Mar. 22, 1938 SUPPORT FOR'WINDOW SHADE ROLLERS Edward A. Clavey, Chicago, 111., assignor to Beckley-C'ardy Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application March 26, 1935, Serial No. 13,091

3 Claims.

My invention relates in general to removably mounted racks, and in particular to a rack or bracket suitable for properly supporting a roller shade or preferably a pair of roller shades to be 5 operated in opposite directions.

Double roller shades mounted at approximately the center of the window so that one shade may be drawn upwardly and the other downwardly are recognized as giving the best lighting effects for many purposes, permitting blocking off of the light frorn'either the lower or upper half, or any intervening portion of the window space. It is often necessary to shade a desk close to the window, but to do so by drawing a shade all the way down from the top would make the far side of the room too dark. Furthermore, top lighting (light coming through the upper third of the window, and preferablyrefiected from the ceiling downward) has been recognized as providing the best natural illumination for most purposes.

The fastening of roller shades at the middle of the windowfhas heretofore been subject to the objection that it interferes somewhat with the cleaning of the window, and the shade is likely to be spotted by dirty water dripping on it as the window is washed. Although removable racks have been provided, they have been troublesome to handle, have been loose enough to rattle, and 3 have sometimes been loose enough to fail to hold up the shades reliably. Furthermore, when two roller shades have been mounted on the ordinary brackets there has sometimes been an objectionable band of light coming through between 35- the shades. 7

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved rack for roller shades.

A further object is to provide a rack, especially a rack suitable for roller shades, which may easily be removedfrom its wallfastenings and which device of the character described which is attrac:

tive in appearance and novel in operation. Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description taken with the drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a front elevation of a window with the present invention applied thereto. 7

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of one form of the inventicn chosen for illustration.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a portion of the structure of Fig. 2 in its alternative position.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the structure shown in Fig. 2 with the bracket removed from the wall fastener;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary plan viewof. the structure shown in Fig. 2 with the rollers removed for the sake of clarity.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary front elevation of the structure shown in Fig. 2' with the rollers removed for the sake of clarity.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view of the back member; and 1 Fig, 8 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of the structure shown in Fig. 6.

Although my invention may take numerous forms, only one has been chosen for illustration. According to this form the upper shade II and the lower shade 42 are mounted on the usual spring rollers l3, each of which carries at one end the usual winding key M and at the other" end a simple trunnion pin 16. In Fig. l the key is at the left of the lower roller and at the right of the upper roller.

At each side of the rollers is a double bracket member I1 appropriately provided with a hole for engaging the pin 55 and a slot for engaging the key M. In the rack member at the right hand side of Fig. l, the slot is preferably a horizontal slot so as to restrain the roller against an upward pull and to hold the key in such position as to prevent latching of the roller. In each of the rack members I? there may be provided a pair of holes I9 through which a wire may be secured to block removal of the key I4 through the slot.

The brackets I! are not secured directly to the wall, but instead are secured to a back plate 2| as by rivets 20. The back plate 2! is preferably provided with top and bottom. flanges 22 for the sake of rigidity. The flanges 22, or at least the top flange, is preferably provided with a downwardly turned second flange 23, which adds to the strength of the member, but which also has a further purpose of facilitating the support of the back plate and the shades mounted thereon in an alternative or out of the way position as illustrated in Fig. 3. It is preferred for this purpose that a pair of hooks 24 be mounted on the window frame above the window so that when the shades are moved from their normal position at the middle of the window, they may easily be hung out of the way above the window where they cannot be harmed by dripping water while the windows are being cleaned.

Normally the back plate 2| is supported at the middle of the window or at any other height desired, by means of coupling lugs 26 and 21 or other suitable means which are secured to fasteners 28 permanently attached to the wall. It is preferred that the lugs 26 and 27 be formed on a coupling plug 29 which is slidably carried by the back plate 2| and secured at a given position with respect thereto by any suitable releasable means such as the nut and bolt 3|. To space the coupler plate 29 and the back plate 2| apart when the nut and bolt 3| are tightened, a shim 32 may be provided as shown. This prevents bending the back plate or coupler plate between the heads of the rivets 28. The top and bottom edges of the coupler plate 29 preferably fit snugly against the flange 22 so that twisting of the coupler plate with respect to the back plate is prevented.

It is preferred that the coupler plate 29 be secured to the fastener 28 substantially in the manner shown, and this comprises one of the features of the invention. It should be apparent, however, that in the broader aspects of the invention, other fastening arrangements may be provided. The fastener 28 is preferably provided with a recess 33 into which the lugs 26 and 21 may be inserted. At the bottom of this recess is formed an upwardly opening slot 34, the front wall of which is formed by a shoulder 36 which is so positioned that when the lug 26 is flat against a seat or shoulder portion 31 of the bracket the front side of its lower edge is firmly engaged by the shoulder 36. The lug 26 is held against vertical movement by the lug 21 which engages a shoulder 38 on the bracket, and against pivotal movement by a shoulder 39 on a latch 4|. The latch 4| is pivoted to the fastener 28 as by a suitable pin 42, and may be actuated in the downward and latching direction either by gravity or by a suitable spring 43 as illustrated.

In order to make it possible to insert the lug 26, behind the shoulder 36 with ease, the slot 34 is enlarged rearwardly by a recess 44. This permits the lug 26, when held at an angle as shown in Fig. 4, to be inserted readily into the slot 34, after which the rack may be pushed back until the lugs 26 and 21 rest firmly against the fastener 28, at which time the lower part of the lug 26 will firmly engage the shoulder 36.

The lower curtain I2 operates in the usual manner, being held in any desired position by the usual pivoted latches in the roller. The upper roller l is drawn upwardly by a cord 46 which extends around a lock pulley 48 by which the shade I! may be held in any position.

When it is desired to clean the windows, or for any other reason to remove the shades, the latches 4| on the two sides may be raised, whereupon the bracket may be tilted outwardly at the top until the lug 2'! is clear of the shoulder 38 and until the lug 26 is at such an angle that will permit its clearing the latch 4| at which time it may be lifted out as shown in Fig. 4.. It may then be hung up on the hooks 24 as shown in Fig. 3. Because the flange 23 extends the entire length of the back plate, it is unnecessary to have the bracket centered with respect to the hooks 24 so the bracket may be hooked on the hooks with extreme ease. To replace the bracket it is merely necessary to remove it from the hooks and thrust the lugs 26 into the slots 34 as indicated in Fig. 4, and then press the top of the rack back. This will automatically raise the latch 4| and permit it to drop into the latching position when the rack is fully seated as shown in Fig. 2. In this position the rack is firmly held against vertical movement by the bottom of the slot 34 and by the shoulder 38, and it is firmly held against movement forwardly or rearwardly by being seated firmly on the seat 3'! and also against the shoulder 36 and the shoulder 39 of the latch 4|. It may also be held against lateral movement by engagement of the fasteners 28 with end faces 49 of the coupler plates 29 which, by means of the nut and bolt 3|, may be adjusted to fit snugly against the inner faces of the fasteners 28. Since the brackets H are riveted directly to the back plate 2|, there is no chance of their being loose, and therefore there is no chance that they will wobble in such a way as to let the rollers drop therefrom.

The structure illustrated has the additional advantages of cheapness, single screw adjustment and elimination of the coupler plates or brackets 29, so that there is no chance of any such parts getting lost. Of course in eliminating these coupler plates, their advantage of permitting adjustment without changing the spacing of roller brackets ll is lost, but for some purposes this loss is more than offset by the gains mentioned. Of course the brackets I! may be separate and adjustable even though the lugs 26 and 21 are integral with the back plates, and vice versa.

None of these modifications effects such important advantages of applicants invention as the rigid locking of the rack as a Whole by the fasteners 28.

Although my invention has been described in its preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that I am not limited thereby, but limit my invention only by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A removable rack assembly including a fastener adapted to be permanently secured to a support and having an upstanding lug thereon having a rearwardly facing shoulder and having a forwardly facing seat spaced above and to the rear of said lug, and a recess formed in said fastener behind said shoulder and extending behind said seat to the bottom of said seat, and a removable rack having a laterally extending lug of such shape as to rest firmly against said seat and said shoulder simultaneously, and latch means for securing said laterally extending lug in said position.

2. A removable rack assembly including a fastener adapted to be permanently secured to a support and having an upstanding lug thereon having a rearwardly facing shoulder and having a forwardly facing seat spaced above and to the rear of said lug, a recess formed in said fastener behind said shoulder and extending behind said seat to the bottom of said seat, a removable rack having a laterally extending lug of such shape as to rest firmly against said seat and said shoulder simultaneously, latch means for securing said laterally extending lug in said position, and said fastener including a downwardly facing shoulder adapted to engage an upwardly facing member on said rack when said lug is in said position, said recess being of such shape as to permit, when said latching means is released, the tilting of said rack to such a position that said upwardly facing member clears said downwardly facing shoulder.

3. A removable rack assembly including a fastener adapted to be rigidly secured to a support and having an upstanding supporting lug integral therewith having arearwardly facing shoulder and a forwardly facing seat spaced above and to the rear of said lug, with said fastener having a recess formed to the rear of the shoulder below "said seat and extending to a point to the rear of said seat, a removable rack, said rack having a laterally extending lug adapted to rest at the EDWARD A. CLAVEY. 

